Page 6 of Soulless Angel

Was it messed up that I felt better once I’d locked it into place? Only myself and my Angels had the combination for it. Made of incredibly strong metal, it couldn’t easily be removed. And it didn’t look like a tracker at all but a piece of regular jewelry. Knowing they could always find me gave me a peace of mind that had been stolen from me. I liked it.

“I probably should, huh?” Raina rubbed a finger over her cat tattoo. “I’ll figure something out.”

“I assume you’re bringing Havoc,” I said as we headed to the checkout to pay.

“Yeah, he was pretty adamant about being the one to come along. I think bringing all three of them would be amazing but would probably draw too much attention. Bummer. How about you? Are you bringing Blaze again?”

I laughed, recalling the discussion about it the previous evening. “I doubt it. Daire was pretty persistent in his intent to come this time. Would that be a problem for you?”

I still worried about Raina and Daire. All three of my Angels had wronged her, but none more so than Daire.

Raina hesitated before answering. She waited until we’d paid and left the store to say, “No, it won’t bother me, but let’s keep our distance inside the club until it’s time to make a move.”

Fair enough. I didn’t particularly want to be getting down and dirty in front of her and Havoc anyway. Still, it worried me that there would always be this issue between Raina and Daire. He’d fucked up. He knew that though. Too bad it was far too late for that to make a difference. Raina said she was over it. I believed that but seeing him had to bring her back to that night. To what he did. Ugh, I hated all of it.

As we got into Raina’s SUV, my phone pinged with a text from Lyra. She was going for drinks with Briar at the nightclub near the campus. They wanted us to join them. Since we’d already gone for dinner, and it was well past dark, Raina thought it would be a great way to wrap up the day.

The nightclub was just kicking off the evening. There were plenty of places to sit. No line at the bar. Lyra and Briar had scored a great table. A booth along the back wall.

Lyra wore a cute white off the shoulder peasant top with tight blue jeans. Her long brown hair was loose, cascadingdown her back. Makeup perfect with natural colors, she was as gorgeous as ever.

Across from her sat Briar, sipping a red drink that I guessed was vodka and cranberry. She was decked out in all of her goth girl glory. She wore a black dress with lace accents and flowing sleeves. From her eye makeup to her lips, she was painted in black. It worked for her though. Her ebony hair fell in soft curls to frame her face.

“Hey, ladies. Glad you could join us.” Lyra scooted over to make room for me. “It’s been a hell of a week. I needed a drink. How are you two?”

Raina slid in next to Briar. She glanced around for a server. “Can’t complain. A drink sounds good. I’m driving though so only one for me. On second thought, screw it. I’ll get one of the guys to pick me up.”

“I’m good,” I said, taking a seat. “Swamped with school work. The usual. Is everything okay with you?”

While Lyra told us about an exam that she’d bombed, I sipped a drink, happy to listen to someone else’s problems. Discussing everyday issues like classes and guys made me feel normal again. I didn’t get a lot of that these days.

Once Briar jumped in with a story about a horrible guy she met on a popular dating app, she had us all laughing. “Can you believe he thought Taco Bell was a nice place for dinner? Then he pulled the whole forgot his wallet bullshit. I’m done with dating apps.”

“Yikes,” Lyra laughed. “I once met a guy on there who expected me to blow him because he bought me dinner. The restaurant was nice and all but screw that. Entitled perv. I made the mistake of telling Jet about it. He beat the guy’s ass. Put him in the hospital.”

She said that last bit with a shrug, like that was to be expected from Jet. My brow arched as I sipped my drink.Somehow I doubted that Jet would react that way if it involved anyone other than Lyra.

“Of course he did.” Raina eyed Lyra over the rim of her glass. “He’s crazy obsessed with you. Does that freak you out?”

Lyra waved a hand, dismissing Raina’s remark. “He’s my stepbrother. He was just looking out for me. Jet can be a little over the top, but he’s not a bad person. Not once you get to know him.”

Raina pressed her lips into a tight, thin line. She nodded, keeping her opinion to herself. We all knew how she felt about Jet. She’d have had him killed by now if it had been up to her.

I suspected there was more going on between Lyra and Jet than Lyra wanted us to know. Not that it was any of our business. Raina was no one to throw stones when it came to obsessed guys. Hell, neither was I. Lyra was a grown ass woman. She could figure this shit out for herself.

It didn’t take long for people to file into the building. As the hour grew later, the place grew more packed. Most of the patrons were students from RU. The university crowd was pretty much what kept this place open.

I was on my third drink when Cash and Daire arrived. Blaze had stayed home to work on a class assignment. He took mostly art and music classes. His studies meant a lot to him. I loved that he had such a passion for his work.

Raina and Lyra were on the dance floor. Briar and I had remained at the table so we wouldn’t lose it to anyone else. While Cash went to the bar for drinks, Daire joined us at the table.

Lifting me off the seat, he sat down and pulled me onto his lap. Arms around my waist, he rested his chin on my shoulder. “Find anything good while shopping today?”

“I did actually. Did you talk to the Sinners about getting us some new I.D. cards?” If I was changing my identity, I’d need a new I.D. to go with it. Daire needed one too.

“Yeah, they’re on it. Told me to come by tomorrow night before we go to the club.” Daire surveyed the dance floor, glaring at two guys who flirted with Raina and Lyra. “Have any of these guys been hassling you? Whose ass do I need to kick?”

His possessiveness made me think about what Lyra had said about Jet. I hid a smile. “Nobody. Cut it out. I don’t want you fighting tonight. We have more important things to worry about.”

---